Building and placing Instagram feeds
Smash Balloon makes it practical to build feeds for different Instagram accounts and place them across a WordPress site.
You can combine multiple accounts into one feed or create separate feeds, then add multiple feeds to the same page or different pages. Place them with the block-editor block, a widget, or a shortcode. Connecting an account also enables Instagram oEmbeds, so this suits sites that want both curated feeds and embedded posts.
Free feed layout and display controls
The free version covers core layout and display adjustments without requiring custom code.
- Responsive layouts and sizing: Adjust feed dimensions, columns, image size, spacing, and background color for different screen widths.
- Visual customization: Use the visual customizer and add a feed header to shape the display.
- Photo display: Choose thumbnail, medium, or full-size images, and order posts chronologically or randomly.
- More posts: Add a Load More button so visitors can reveal additional photos.
- Performance and privacy: The plugin supports WebP images and integrates with popular GDPR consent plugins, with a GDPR setting included.
- Site customization: Use custom CSS or JavaScript, and place feeds in supported page builders.
Features reserved for Instagram Feed Pro
Pro is aimed at sites that need more ways to curate or present Instagram posts.
- Additional sources and filtering: Create hashtag feeds, filter posts by hashtags or keywords, and moderate which posts appear.
- Expanded media display: Add lightboxes for photos, reels, and videos, plus carousels and Masonry or Highlight layouts.
- Post details and links: Show captions and engagement counts, or add shoppable links to individual posts.
- Ready-made designs and assistance: Use pre-designed themes and access priority support.
Recent updates, but limited forum resolution
Recent maintenance and an excellent rating are positive signals, but the support figures offer less reassurance.
The plugin was updated within the last week. Its forum snapshot shows eight support threads, with only a quarter marked resolved; that small sample is not conclusive, but it gives limited evidence of consistent issue resolution. Its broad adoption and strong rating may appeal to sites seeking a well-established feed tool, while sites that expect help with setup should weigh the free support picture against Pro’s priority support. For basic account-based feeds, the free controls look substantial; check the Pro feature boundary if you need advanced curation or layouts.
